4th and 5th animal-cruelty cases under investigation in Mahoning County

For the fourth and fifth times in two weeks, Animal Charity humane agents are investigating animal-cruelty cases involving dogs.

Talia Musolino, manager at Animal Charity, Mahoning County’s humane agency, said a landlord was walking in the yard of his Salt Springs Road property on the West Side on Wednesday morning when he discovered a stray dog that was missing a leg.

The dog was taken to Animal Charity where veterinarians determined the animal’s leg “unfortunately, had been cut off by someone,” Musolino said.

The vets ruled out the dog’s being hit by a car or injured by another dog, she said.

“Part of her tail was missing, too, almost like it got in the way,” Musolino said.

The dog is a female Labrador retriever mix between 8 months and a year old. She’s stable but will undergo surgery today to clean up the wound, she said.

The dog will be available for adoption at the Market Street shelter in Boardman within a few days.

About 5 p.m. Wednesday, humane agents and representatives from the Mahoning County Dog Warden’s office found a dog, likely a pit-bull mix, hanging from a tree in a wooded area off Salt Springs.

Dave Nelson, deputy dog warden, said the animal had probably been there for a couple of days. It was hanging from a wire-type leash. He said Animal Charity is handling the case.

Nelson said that information from the investigation of the two dead puppies found in a bag across from the Western Reserve Transit Authority terminal last week has been turned into the city prosecutor’s office. The dog warden is waiting for the prosecutor’s office to decide how to proceed.